The Magic White Swan 

 A farmer went fishing one day. He had a long fishing net. Like other farmers, he wore a piece of cloth around his head. He cast his net, but he got nothing. He did it again and again, but he got nothing. There was not a single fish. He cast his net once, twice, thrice, but he got nothing. He cast his net for the last time and pulled up the net. He pulled and he pulled. "Oh, it is so heavy." Then, he found a white pebble in his net. It was the most beautiful pebble that he had ever seen. So, he took the pebble home and placed it on the altar above his head. After dinner, he went to sleep. The next day, the white pebble had turned into a white swan. The swan approached the farmer and said, "I will take you to a place, a beautiful place, full of flowers. You can take whatever you like." [Source: seasite.niu.edu/lao/LaoFolkLiterature /*\]

 So the swan began flapping its wings and flew off to the garden with the farmer sitting on its back. Once there the farmer enjoyed the garden. He picked one flower and felt that it was heavy. He picked the second one and it got heavier. He picked the third one and it was even heavier. "Oh, I don't think I should pick any more flowers. It will be too heavy for the swan to fly and take me home." So, the swan took the farmer back home and disappeared. The flowers were turned into gold! So, the farmer became a rich man. /*\

 The news of his wealth reached the ears of his friend, who came to ask the farmer right away about how he had acquired his wealth. The farmer told his friend everything. The next day, his friend went to fish in the river with his long net. He cast his net, but he got nothing. He cast his net once, twice, thrice, but he got nothing. He cast his net for the last time and pulled up the net. Then, he found a white pebble in his net. He took the pebble home and placed it in his room. The pebble became the beautiful white swan who said to the second farmer:"I will take you somewhere today, to a flower garden."So, the man jumped on the swan's back and the swan took off to the flower garden. Once there the man picked the flowers, one, two, three. /*\

 "Oh, I have to pick a lot since I have come here already," he said. So he picked two arms' full of flowers and went to the swan. "Take me home now. I will put these away and I will come back for more." So he jumped on the swan's back. It was so heavy. The swan almost could not fly. He flew, swaying left and right with weight. But he was able to take the man to his house with difficulty. The man jumped off the swan's back and said, "Now, wait here. Don't go away. I will go back to the garden to pick more flowers." Then he took the flowers into his room. When he came back, the swan disappeared. He returned to his room, but he found . . .only ordinary flowers, no gold.